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Making Money Online

slackira by slackira
Last updated: 01/27/2011

Take the Legal Road

How many times have you heard, making money is easy, make money fast or make a $1000/hour. Trust me, making money is not easy. The internet is filled with money making scams and some are so dangerous that they can seriously rip you off your bank accounts.

I'm a student and I keep a look out for online and legit money making opportunities to earn some extra cash to fulfill my extra needs. But I'm very choosy about my work too. I can't risk giving out my personal info to any and every money making service that I come across. I believe in risk free jobs and services that hopefully bring me the money worth my time and the hard work I put in.

So if you think like me, then I've listed all the money making services that I've joined as they are legit. Take a look below and maybe you'll find an alternate to your day time job or a way of earning some side pocket cash ;-).

P.S: Remember, your success depends on how determined you are and how much work you put in. Money will not flow out from the below services, but if you're patient and serious about making good money, you'll have to put in work in order to achieve success.

                                               
Good Luck.

Cafepress

This is the first money making opportunity I took. Cafepress is known worldwide but if you're unaware of it, here are brief points about Cafepress.

What it is:
(a) It's a print on demand company.
(b) Is free to join.
(c) Offers many ways to earn money.
(d) Is available for countries worldwide.
(e) Payment by check and paypal.

What it offers:
(a) Free store/s with domain name of your choice.
(b) A large variety of products to work on.
(c) Affiliate program
(d) Helpful tutorials and forum.

What you have to do:
(a) Create your own designs using graphic design software/s such as Gimp , Photo Shop , Corel Draw
(b) Paste them on products.
(c) Promote your stores.

And what you get from all this is actual MONEY.

I've been a member since march 2006 and I'm happy with what I've earned so far. If you're interested then go ahead and check it out.

Cafepress

Good luck

Zazzle

Another print on demand service

Zazzle is another reputable name in the line of print on demand services.People from all over the world can join and earn money from their created designs.Payments are made via checks and paypal.

Advantages of zazzle over other pod companies:

a) It has A Lot of products to work on. Different types, colors and sizes of each.
b) It offers free customizable stores. No fees at all.
c) Earn referral commission at different levels.
d) Product designer is great. Fast and easy to use.
e) Lots of store promotion tools.
f) Helpful forum.

A must checkout site.

Zazzle.com

Good luck

My personal experience with Cafepress and Zazzle

On request of reader, Luminosity

Lets begin with Cafepress

I joined Cafepress in March 2006. Although I have no background in graphic design, vector illustration or anything as such, I do love drawing, colors and the world of art. And perhaps, that's what encouraged me to join in. I knew it was never going to be easy because there were already millions of shopkeepers running stores. But I just had to give it a try.
The site seemed so welcoming. And the fact that I could have my personal stores where I could sell stuff and earn actual money was something very new for me. I signed up and began to explore my account. Read the rules, design regulations etc. Also looked up for the payment faq and filled up account information.

Now for the regular site overview:

1) In the "Your Shops" section shops are lined up and can be accessed easily. Help is provided on the right, where you'll find informative links related to your account. Below that is the Cafepress News Widget.
2) Next Section is the "Media Basket" that contains all the pictures and media content the user uploads. You can create separate folders for specific image categories.
3) Next comes "Sales Reports" where you can access reports based on product, design sales etc.
4) And finally the "Resources" section where you'll find product design templates, helpful links and the Cafepress Community Forums link as well.
5) Cafepress pays you 10% of your set commission on products if the sale is made from the Cafepress market place. But If the sale is made through your shop link then you get all of your commission. I know this is somewhat unfair, but the site changed its policies somewhere in 2008 i guess. A lot of shopkeepers left and a lot were unhappy about this. But there's nothing that can be done. The company officials said, the new policies where adapted for marketing and advertisement reasons. Anyway, that's how it was.
6) I also opted in for the premium shop, but after spending $36 for almost 6 months I closed it. I only made 2 sales of which 1 order was canceled later. I learned that I wasn't ready for a premium shop yet. One needs 100's of designs, some good html/css knowledge and clever marketing techniques to successfully run a premium store.

My earnings have not been consistent but I still love cafepress for a legal opportunity that promises what is says. During the years 2009-10 I did not work on the site at all, but I still made sales because I did not close my Basic Shops. During all this time, i have experimented with several graphic design software and to create images on my own. I can do average to good work now which sells.

A final word of advise on Cafepress: Do join if my testimonial has convinced you. Cafepress welcomes artists and non artists from anywhere around the world.

Zazzle:

Not my cup of tea. I will not write much about zazzle because, I have nothing much to say. My zazzle experience has not been a very delightful one.

I joined zazzle sometime in 2008. For me the first glance was rather confusing, as I could only see designs of well known Hollywood movies and other brands displayed on the main page. Anyway, I signed up. When I tried signing in for the first time, I couldn't understand why was i being redirected to the zazzle homepage instead of my account page. The site navigation is extremely hard to understand especially for a person who does not know about pod services at all. Had to select an individual product every time, as the bulk selection never came up with the products I wanted to work on.

If that wasn't bad enough, I recently noticed that I was losing 1 cent per day of whatever little earnings I had in my zazzle account. I had no idea what was all this about. This has never happened on Cafepress. I went on to the forums to ask about this, when I came to know I was blocked from the forums. Although, I have never spammed or misbehaved at the forums. That was pretty insulting for me. I reported it to the customer service. In reply, they said it was system glitch and should be fixed soon. But I guess I had had enough. About a few weeks ago I closed my Zazzle account.

Zazzle does offer some benefits over Cafepress, such as free premium stores. But that just isn't enough for me. Ease of site use and exact answers are important as well. And in terms of customer service, I received a response in 24 hours of time from both companies, which is good.

Zazzle has been good enough for a lot of people. It didn't work for me but it may work for you. Join and give it a try.

Final Verdict: I prefer Cafepress over Zazzle.

What worked for you?

Which is the better p.o.d in your opinion and why?

Loading Fetching blurbs now... please stand by

Cafepress

slackira says:

Cafepress all the way. I'm proud to be a part of it.

Posted January 21, 2011

Zazzle

recipes-with-pasta says:

Zazzle is nice and easy, but I wont hesitate to try cafepress as well

Posted February 11, 2011

ArefinShams says:

I began with zazzle and still with it.
how can I change my IP address

Posted January 26, 2011

brittzy says:

haven't tried cafepress, but i have had quite a bit of success with Zazzle. nothing recently, though.

Posted January 22, 2011

fanfreluche says:

Zazzle all the way for me. I bought a couple of print already and the quality was very nice. I have good sales there. I never ever use the bulk create tool because I want to pick the best items for my design. I love the free store, as well and the customizable front page. I never had any problem there.

Posted January 21, 2011

 

Printfection

What it is:
(a) A print on demand company.
(b) Free to join.
(c) Available to countries worldwide.
(d) Payment by check.

What is offers:
(a) Free customizable store/s.
(b) Lots of products and unlimited colors to work on.
(c) Helpful tutorials and forum.

What you have to do:
(a) Come up with your own designs.
(b) Paste them on products.
(c) Promote your store.

And you get paid for your hard work and determination.

Printfection

Good luck.

Printshop

Sell your designs on clothing and other merchandise

Printshop is a U.K based print on demand service which allows you to sell your designs on their products.What makes this service different from others is that, you don't have to setup your store.You just mail your designs and the printshop folks will build and launch your store for you.Plus, you can sell other products that are not provided by the printshop service.You have to promote your store.You can sell in dollars,pounds or even euros but you get paid in pounds.You can't set your own markup though, its already set by the printshop admin.Available to people worldwide.Payments are made by monthly checks.Overall, it's a good service.You can mail them for any questions you may have.Go through the site and see if you'd want to sell with these guys.

Printshop

Good luck.

15 Free Open Source softwares to create your own drawings

The Royalty Free Myth

Don't ever fall for the royalty free commercial use stuff (graphics and fonts),available on websites and blogs. If you intend to use such stuff then PLEASE READ site copyright policies and/or contact the designer or author personally for permission. Unauthorized use can get one into serious trouble.

Free Store Club

This company offers you free stores with no customization required. Although it's legit, I didn't join it because, every store contains the same products, only different markups set by store owners. Unlike cafepress and printfection where you have to post designs on products. Confused?
For example, If I set a $5 markup on a mug and somebody else sets a lower markup on the same mug, I have chances of losing a sale because the other person charges less for the exact same mug.
That is the reason I didn't join the site. But it doesn't mean it can't work for you. If interested read below and check out the website for yourself.

What it is:
(a) An online company.
(b) Free 90 day trial on the free level store. You can also upgrade to silver, gold and platinum memberships.
(c) Available worldwide.
(d) Payment by check.

What it offers:
(a) A free store.
(b) Better deals for silver, gold and platinum members.
(c) Same products on every store.

What you have to do?

Just set markup and promote your store.

Free Store Club

Good luck.

Quote by Benjamin Franklin.

A penny saved is a penny earned.

Survey Savvy

The highest paid survey

Survey savvy is the highest paying survey website.It's known worldwide and is legit.It pays about $5-$25 per survey and accepts members worldwide.I've also joined in and filled my portrait forms.Payment through check.

Survey Savvy

Good Luck.

Survey Head

Survey Head is another nice survey site that pays you $5 to join and a decent amount between $3 to $5 per survey depending on your qualification for a survey. It is open to international members and pays via paypal. Be sure to complete your basic profile surveys in order to receive invitations. Survey head offers nice little rewards in exchange for your earnings if you're interested. Otherwise you can redeem your earnings when you reach $25. Unfortunately, they don't have a referral program but it's still a good site to join.

Survey Head

Good Luck

American Consumer Opinion

Another Top Survey Site

the American Consumer Opinion is a top survey site and is known worldwide.This is the first survey site i came across.Members from all over the world are welcome to join but surveys are mostly available to U.S residents only.I'd recommend that you go through the site details about their process before joining.

American Consumer Opinion

Good luck.

A little tip

To save money, buy one of those clay pots which have a coin slot in them. They're very cheap. When you get your allowance or salary, you can keep a small amount of it in the clay pot. Do this for a few months and break the pot when you're finally ready to see how much you've saved. Be patient though

Npd Online Research

Online survey site

I joined this service after a lot of consideration. Npd is known worldwide and is legit. I received my first survey after 2 weeks of joining though I am not a U.S resident. Its available to countries worldwide and pays through check. Check it out and if interested, join the panel :-).

Npd Online Research

Good luck

Global Test Market

Online survey site

Another well known service that offers you to fill online surveys to earn money. You earn market points and when you reach 1000 market points, they can be redeemed for cash. Although most surveys are available to U.S residents but international members are also welcome to join. Payment by check.

Global Test Market

Good luck.

Quote by Norman Vincent Peale.

Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.

Snap Dollars

I found this site to be quite interesting as this is the first one that actually sent me a get paid to read "email"..lol, well snap dollars seems pretty much legit. They pay $5 as sign up bonus. You can earn money through playing games, taking surveys and completing offers..works best for U.S and European countries. Free for everyone to join. Payment through check.

Snap Dollars

Good luck.

Treasure Trooper

Take surveys and complete offers to earn money.

I had joined treasure trooper some time ago and cancelled my membership because, most of the offers are available to U.S members only. Although, Canadian and U.K members can also benefit from this site a lot.
If interested in joining, go through the forums for further information.

What it is:
(a) An online site which offers to earn money through answering surveys, completing offers, playing games, contests and referrals.
(b) Available worldwide.
(c) Payment by check.

Treasure trooper

Good luck.

Cash Crate

This is also a survey and free offers site.Although most offers here are for U.S residents.International members can join too.Payment through check.

What it is:
(a) An online site that offers to earn money through answering surveys, completing offers and referrals.
(b) Available worldwide.
(c) Payment through check.

Cash Crate

Good luck.

Stockxpert

Sell your photographs and graphic designs for cash.

I will only recommend this site to either professionals or very talented photographers and graphic designers.At stockxpert you can sell your photographs and graphics for money.Commissions start from $1 depending on the resolution of the image.The site rules are very strict so be careful not to tamper with them.So the bottom line is, not only can you showcase your talent on this site but also earn cash.Checkout the site for details and questions.

Stockxpert

Good Luck.

Blogs

Your diary can earn you money.

Blogging is another good way of earning money.You can post adds on your blog and get paid every time someone clicks on any of the adds posted.Of course it's a slow process and doesn't promise a lot of cash, but its safe.If you're going for this method of earning money then you need to put work to promote your blog.Good content and traffic can mean more clicks and better chances of earning.I've listed some good paid to write and blog sites in my Blogging lens.A good site to grab free blogs is blogger.com

Blogger

Good luck

Part 2

Free Stuff on the Web

Is it real?

Now free stuff on the internet is like free lunch in a five star restaurant. Very hard to find genuine sites, i still managed to get hold of a few sites which I've shared with you below.

Teen Free Way

A good site for teenage girls to get hold of nice free stuff. You can get free cosmetics and skin care samples, free magazines and enter contests. Make money from surveys and online jobs. Teenfreeway.com is a legit site and has a good reputation. There's loads to grab from this site.

Teen Free Way

Free Catalogs

From catalink.com you can order free catalogs and brochures from different brands. It's actually very helpful as you can go through details of specific goods you intend to buy and you get to keep the catalog for free. Catalink did deliver internationally some time ago but now the free catalogs are only available within the U.K, i guess. Checkout the site for more details.

Catalink

Please rate my lens and leave your comments & suggestions in here :).

Please do not leave your cash crate, treasure trooper or any other account links.

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slackira

Hi,my name's kiran and am 25 yrs old. I'm a simple person and try to remain happy. I'm like every other girl out there,i love make-up, jewelry, hand bags... more »

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